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Snowfall at Yamadera

Yamagata (山形) is the prefectural capital of Yamagata prefecture.

Get in

By plane

Yamagata Airport (GAJ  IATA) in Higashine is the nearest airport. It has domestic flights from Osaka (Itami), Tokyo (Haneda), and Nagoya (Komaki Airport). Flights directly to Yamagata can be very expensive. Sendai has flights from more airports and is typically significantly cheaper, so it is recommended to fly into Sendai and then travel by train to Yamagata. From Sendai Airport Station to Yamagata Station it takes a little over 2 hours and costs ¥1680.

By train

The Yamagata Shinkansen zips from Tokyo to Yamagata in 2:45 at a cost of ¥10,690, and continues onward to Shinjo. From Fukushima onward the Shinkansen travels on an ordinary track and thus at ordinary speeds.

By bus

JR Bus Tohoku runs an overnight bus service, the Sakuranbo, from Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. The trip takes about 6 1/4 hours and costs ¥6,500.

Kintetsu Bus operates a night bus to Yamagata from Osaka (Tennoji Station) and Kyoto (Kyoto Station's Hachijoguchi exit) for ¥13,300 (one-way)/¥24,000 (roundtrip) from Osaka or ¥12,800 (one-way)/¥23,100 (roundtrip) from Kyoto.

Get around

Most of the town is centered around the JR station in the middle of town. Yamagata has a bus route, taxis, and bicycles for rent. Most of the most popular tourist destinations have bus routes that run to various areas around town.

Yamako Bus timetables can be found here.

See

  • 1 Yamagata Castle (山形城), ☏ +81 23-641-1212. 5AM-10PM. A reconstruction of the original castle built with wood for greater authenticity. The castle was built with a moat, gates, baileys, and palace structures but it never had a donjon. Efforts are ongoing to rebuild each part of the former castle. The site is listed as one of the top 100 castles in Japan. 
  • 2 Mogami Yoshiaki Historical Museum (最上義光歴史館), 1-53 Omotecho, ☏ +81 23-625-7101. Mogami Yoshiaki was a former daimyo of the Dewa Province. Yamagata City was established under his rule. The museum includes exhibits about the city's history in addition to those about Mogami. 
  • 3 Yamagata Prefectural Museum (山形県立博物館), 1-8 Kajo-machi. A museum with exhibits of historic artifacts from Yamagata Prefecture. It is home to the famous "Jomon Goddess" (Jomon no Megami), a ceramic statue of a goddess forged in the Jomon Period. For Japanese history buffs, it's worth a visit just to see this object. The prefecture's famous pilgrimage shrines (the Dewa Sanzan) and temple (Yamadera) also have informative exhibits. In addition to the historical exhibits, the museum also has displays on the local culture, rocks and minerals, and flora and fauna. 
  • 4 Bunshōkan (文翔館). 9AM-4:30PM. A large structure constructed during the Taisho Period after British Renaissance architecture. Free. 
  • 5 Yamagata Museum of Art (山形美術館 yamagata bijutsukan). 10AM-5PM. The museum's permanent collection contains works by Kichiro Hasegawa, Matsuo Basho, and Claude Monet. ¥500. 
  • 6 Kyōdokan (山形市郷土館). Built in 1876 as a hospital, it's known for its unique architecture. It was registered as an Important Cultural Property in 1966. 
  • 7 Seifū-sō (清風荘). A historic building with a nice garden. Viewing the garden is free, but you can have tea within the building for a fee. 
  • 9 Karamatsu Kannondo (唐松観音堂). One of the 33 temples of the Mogami pilgrimage. It juts out of the mountainside overlooking the surrounding area. 

Yamadera

  • 11 Yamadera (山寺). Commonly known as Yamadera, the temple's actual name is Ryūshaku-ji (立石寺) Temple. Founded in 860 AD by the priest Ennin, the sacred flame inside is tended everyday and has been burning for those thousand years. The name of the temple means "Standing Stones Temple" for the fantastically wind and water sculpted stones on the mountainside and all along the way up. It's a steep 1110 steps from the entrance to the complex all the way to the Oku-no-in sanctuary at the top, but the view of the mountains and countryside spread out before you, especially from the Godaigo viewing platform, seems little changed over the centuries, and is worth the effort. There are also a number of important cultural treasures - Buddhist sculptures, mandalas and such - held and displayed by the temple, whose priests have strongly resisted the bid to become nationally designated as such, preferring to tend the temples, sculptures and other treasures as they always have, without the bureaucratic regulation official designation entails. This temple is also called Risshakuji. ¥300. 
  • 13 Yamadera Bashō Museum (山寺芭蕉記念館), ☏ +81 23-695-2221. The famous poet, Matsuo Basho, stopped here on his journey through the Tohoku Region. The museum gives information about him, his travels, and the poems he wrote here at Yamadera. ¥400. 
Bunshokan

Do

  • 1 Yamagata Traditional Kokeshikan (やまがた伝統こけし館 yamagata dentō kokeshikan), Nana Beans 5F. The Kokeshikan has displays of old kokeshi and explanations of the various types of kokeshi. Visitors can also try painting their own kokeshi dolls. ¥300 to paint your own kokeshi.. 

Buy

From the JR station in the middle of town, there are free buses that will take you over to a decent amount of the local non-touristy shopping. JusCo has a bus that runs up until 4pm each day that visits the eastern Yamagata location. Central to the JR station, there is a wealth of local shops, department stores, book stores of all kinds. The main street that runs from the JR station has several side streets as well. Upon a recent visit (2006), there were many shops that catered to all your basic needs, though very few were designed or meant exclusively as tourist destinations. There are very few chain stores in downtown Yamagata, though the skirts of town have a few chain stores like Joy (hardware), Super Denkodo (electronics), JusCo (giant supermarket), and a Toys R Us.

Eat

Yamagata is known for its ramen. The specific type said to originate here is hiyashi ramen which is characterized by its cold broth. As such, it's especially popular in the summertime, although you can eat it year-round.

  • 1 Ryushanhai. A Yamagata ramen restaurant. 
  • 2 Gran Rock (カフェレストラングランロック). 11AM-8:30PM. Their signature dish is the Omurice, but they also serve Yamagata beef burgers, pizza, and a variety of pasta dishes. 
  • 3 [dead link] Uchoten Ramen EVOLUTION (有頂天らーめんEVOLUTION). A ramen restaurant serving its own original ramen dishes, as well as normal ramen, gyoza, and other foods. 
  • 4 Takefuku (竹ふく). 11:30AM-3PM. A popular soba restaurant. 

Drink

  • 2 50s Cocktail Bar Cool (50's cocktail's bar クール). 7PM-3AM Mon-Thurs, 6PM-4AM Fri-Sat, 7PM-1AM Sun. A bar that looks like a 1950s American diner. 
  • 3 Ride 4 Style, ☏ +81 23-687-0721. 7PM-3AM. A sports bar. 

Sleep

Nearly every hotel in the city is located around Yamagata Station.

  • 1 Hotel Limoges (ホテルリモージュ). Rooms from ¥3700. 
  • 3 Hotel Alpha-1 Yamagata (ホテル・アルファ－ワン山形). Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 10AM. Singles from ¥3800. 

Go next

  • Yamadera, the Mountain Temple, is nearby and the main tourist draw in these parts.
  • The holy mountains of Dewa Sanzan are within striking distance of Yamagata.
  • Mt Zao hotsprings and ski resort, famous for the formation of Juhyo (ice and snow encrusted pine trees, sometimes called snow ghosts) is a 45 minute bus ride
  • Sendai - Capital of Miyagi Prefecture
  • Yonezawa
  • Tendo
  • Kaminoyama
  • Tsuruoka
Routes through Yamagata
Shinjo ←  N  S  → Kaminoyama-Onsen Template:Rtarrow Akayu Template:Rtarrow Takahata Template:Rtarrow Yonezawa → Fukushima
Akita ← Obanazawa ←  N  S  → Kaminoyama-Onsen Template:Rtarrow Akayu Template:Rtarrow Takahata Template:Rtarrow Yonezawa → Fukushima


This city travel guide to Yamagata is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.
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